Bared
by RebeccaInley
Summary: Elliot becomes enraged toward a suspect during an interrogation, leaving Olivia puzzled. Chapter 4 now up!
1. Chapter 1

_A/N: This is my first posted fanfic. Up until this point I've been around reading and reviewing but I thought I'd finally try my hand at writing something. I would really appreciate reviews and feedback -- good or bad!_

Disclaimer: I don't own these characters or anything affiliated with Law & Order:SVU. They belong solely to Dick Wolf (lucky bastard!)

* * *

It wasn't like she hadn't seen him without a shirt on before.

She had seen him shirtless in plenty of situations – completely "just partner" appropriate situations, of course. Like when they were working out or the numerous times he had crashed on her couch because it was late and they were both too drunk to drive.

And then there were the few moments she had allowed herself to spend being amazed at how the muscles rippled in his back after the incident with Blaine. She shook her head, not wanting to go back to such a dark time in their history. Things were still complicated but by now Olivia had accepted that they always would be. She had run to Oregon but even there she couldn't escape him. He had crept into her dreams most nights and the nights he didn't appear she woke up tired and missing him. So, because she was a logical person -- hell, a detective who got paid to notice and deduce -- Olivia had resigned herself to the fact that she was most definitely in love with her partner.

Sure, she knew it would never work between them. Even though he and Kathy were divorced now, there were still too many obstacles, too many secrets, too many people who would be affected. Too much history.

It was with the frame of mind of a realist that Olivia resumed her carefully inconspicuous study of her partner's bare chest. The chest whose residence was confined strictly to her daydreams and behind her eyes at night. The chest that smoothly flowed into a toned, defined abdomen that her hands desperately wanted to dance across. The chest that she could easily picture hovering….No, Olivia refused to go there. Especially while she was sitting in the locker room of the 1-6, still technically on duty but about to be faced with a very unhappy Cragen.

The precise reason as to why Elliot and Olivia were currently in the locker room, as opposed to on the streets, was because of an incident that had occurred during the interrogation they had been in mere minutes ago. Their perp, Peter Mitchelle, had been attacking new mothers for the past two weeks and Munch and Fin had finally managed to track him down and bring him in.

* * *

"_Why'd you pick them, Peter, huh?" asked Olivia, leaning on the edge of the table. "Because women who have just given birth are a hell of a lot less likely to put up a fight?"_

"_Just not man enough to handle a stronger woman, are you?" Elliot chimed in from the corner._

"_Or maybe," Olivia continued, "it's because you have issues with your own mother. It always seems to come back to the mother, doesn't it Elliot?"_

"_Mhmm," Elliot assented_

_Olivia pushed herself off the table to walk around to their perp. She circled him, leaning closer to his ear. _

"_See, my partner and I --, " was all she got out before Mitchelle had her pushed up against the wall with one hand around her neck and the other grabbing her right breast roughly. _

"_You wanna see me do a real woman? I'll take her, I'll take her right here!" he screamed into the two-way mirror. _

_Olivia punched him twice in the face before kneeing him swiftly in the balls. She looked on in disgust as the man fell to the floor, immediately curling up into the fetal position and looking very much like he was trying not to cry. The satisfying crunch of bone she had heard after her second punch made her almost certain his nose was broken. _

"_Are you okay?" Cragen asked, turning away from the observation window as she walked out of the room. Olivia nodded. _

_Before the Captain could continue, they both were startled into turning back to the window by the sounds of Elliot Stabler in rage. Elliot had Mitchelle back on the floor, this time clutching his ribs, before Olivia could get in the room. _

"_El! Elliot! What the hell do you think you're doing?" Olivia yelled over the sounds of Mitchelle's whimpering. She grabbed his elbow to drag him out of the room and into some degree of sanity but he pulled away. He towered over the injured man for a second as Olivia heard him whisper vehemently, "No one ever screws with my partner like that. Ever." There was a certain amount of finality in his voice that Olivia had never heard before. It was coldly terrifying and under no circumstances did she ever want it directed toward herself. Elliot poised his foot to give Mitchelle one last kick but Olivia quickly yanked him away._

"_Elliot!" she said roughly, "Let's go!"_

_Outside the interrogation room, the two detectives were met by a livid Cragen. "Both of you need to cool off and get cleaned up. Then I want you in my office," he barked, glaring._

* * *

So it was because of Elliot's infamous lack of control that Olivia found herself staring at his naked chest. What she didn't understand (and certainly didn't want to spend as much time thinking about) as well as the smooth muscles in his torso, was what had made her partner snap. Well, technically, she knew what had made him snap, it was the 'why' that was puzzling her. It was obvious from his last comment to Mitchelle that he had taken offense with the perp's actions toward her.

Of course Olivia had been pissed too; she didn't take too kindly to being felt up by a criminal in an interrogation room. But she was also confident that she had the situation completely under control. This wasn't the first time something like this had happened and it wouldn't be the last. She knew that, as did Elliot, yet Olivia couldn't remember her partner ever reacting so violently to what was clearly a controlled (and certainly not life or death) situation.

Despite all her detective training and her uncanny ability to read people, Olivia was at a complete loss as to why Mitchelle's declaration that he would "take her right there" had fazed Elliot to the point of outright and unnecessary violence.


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N: Thank you so much to everyone who took time to read and review! I really, really appreciate it and would be very grateful if you continued doing so. A word about the timeline of this story: Even though I mentioned Olivia's stint in Oregon in the first chapter as though it was recent, this is really more post season nine since Eli is around. If it seems a little funky, just try to go with it._

Disclaimer: I don't own these characters or anything affiliated with Law & Order: SVU.

* * *

He knew she was looking at him.

Elliot could feel her eyes boring into him, surely searching for some explanation to his earlier behavior. He wondered for a split second if she had noticed he was shirtless; if she had noticed she was staring unabashedly at her very naked from the waist up partner. Inwardly, he dismissed that line of thought as preposterous with an amused smirk, knowing it was much more likely she was turning the events of the past fifteen minutes over in her mind. He knew it was only a matter of time before she began peppering him with questions about his behavior.

"Elliot?" Olivia started.

"Yeah, Liv," he said, finally shrugging on a clean shirt and turning to face her, his back against his locker. Olivia was leaning against the opposite row of lockers, a decidedly puzzled expression on her face. Her eyes were questioning, probing for an answer and yet determined at the same time.

"What happened out there?" And so the peppering began.

"I don't know, Liv. I just snapped, okay? I'm sorry," Elliot said, lying by omission. He knew exactly what had happened. That little prick had grabbed Olivia – grabbed _his partner_ – and shoved her against the wall. He had mauled her, put his hands all over her, and promised to fuck her right then and there before anyone could stop him. Of course, Olivia had quickly put an end to that but just seeing Mitchelle with his hands on her like that had made Elliot's blood boil. _No one _was allowed to touch his partner like that without her permission. In fact, Elliot didn't like the idea of someone touching her like that at all.

'Get a grip, Stabler,' he told himself, 'You can't turn your partner into a nun.'

"Bullshit, Elliot," Olivia rolled her eyes. "You don't just snap," she made air-quotes at the word snap, "when the situation is completely under control. I had Mitchelle on the floor about to start crying. Unless you've turned sympathetic toward our perps, what about that situation made you snap?"

"I don't know, Olivia. Honest to God, I don't know," Elliot lied.

Olivia eyed him skeptically – and with good reason, Elliot thought, seeing as he was feeding her a load of crap. With everything that had happened over the past few years, he had realized just how much he needed Olivia. Not only had she continued to back his plays at work, but she had also supported him through the divorce. Somehow, Elliot thought divorcing Kathy would be easier the second time around but, if anything, it was harder with Eli in the picture.

In the months after the divorce was finalized, he and Olivia had grown closer. The jokes flowed more easily, long stakeouts didn't seem quite so boring, and the nights they spent together with beer and bad movies became more and more frequent. It didn't take a genius to figure out where their relationship was heading and, as much as Elliot had tried to ignore and deny it, he had finally accepted that he was in love with his partner.

"El," Olivia's voice brought him back to the conversation at hand. Her voice and eyes had softened, begging him to tell her what was really going on. "I heard what you said to him. To Mitchelle, I mean."

Elliot immediately dropped his gaze. Well, shit, she wasn't supposed to have heard that.

"Liv, look, it's just that I – " Elliot stuttered and then stopped.

"You what, El? Just tell me. Please."

Elliot dragged his eyes from the floor to meet hers squarely. "I just, got so mad, because, well, because – " he was interrupted by the door bursting open.

"Hey, ya'll know Cap's lookin' for you…" Fin trailed off, seeing the intense looks being exchanged between the two partners.

Olivia averted her eyes first. "Yeah, we know. Thanks, Fin," she shot in his general direction. Fin could tell where he wasn't wanted and quickly backed out of the room.

"El," Olivia said quietly, looking back up at him. "This isn't finished, okay?"

He nodded. "Okay."

* * *

Cragen was absolutely furious. Neither Elliot nor Olivia was sure if they had seen him this mad before.

"You broke two of his ribs, Elliot! For no reason! Please, tell to me how the hell I'm going to explain that to his defense attorney. Or IAB, for that matter! I mean, at least Olivia had a good reason. But you…" Cragen muttered, pacing. Elliot and Olivia sat stoically side by side in front of his desk. Cragen finally sat down, putting his head in his hands for a moment before looking directly at Elliot.

"What happened?" he questioned sharply.

"I don't know."

"Damnit, Elliot. Don't give me that routine. What. Happened?" Cragen enunciated the last two words clearly.

"I just…I just don't know," Elliot repeated. He'd rather be sent to see Huang about managing his anger before admitting to his captain that he was in love with his partner before he even told Olivia herself.

Cragen sighed, obviously defeated, and buried his head in his hands again. "You're suspended for three days. No pay," he said without looking up.

Grateful that the inquisition was over, Elliot simply nodded and left the office, meeting Olivia's eyes once more on his way out.

"Olivia," Cragen stated, knowing she hadn't left with Elliot.

"Yes, sir?"

Cragen finally looked up. "Do us all a favor and find out what the hell is going on with him. I know he has a tendency to get violent during interrogations, but this was something different. He wasn't even provoked. And it's uncharacteristic of him to just accept his suspension like that."

"Yes, sir. I'm worried about him too," Olivia told Cragen before leaving the office.

Donald Cragen leaned back in his chair. He knew his detectives well enough to know when something was going on. He could only hope that whatever it was this time wouldn't tear his best team apart.


	3. Chapter 3

_A/N: First off, I'd like to apologize for the slight delay in posting this. I started another story, One Bad Date, and found writing that one a tad more fun than this. Secondly, there may have been a problem uploading the second chapter; I don't think the story reappeared on the main page as being updated. So, if you haven't read that, please do (duh). Also, feel free to review both the second chapter, too._

Disclaimer: I don't own these characters or anything affiliated with Law & Order:SVU

* * *

Olivia had looked everywhere for him.

She had been to the bar down the street from the precinct, to his apartment, and to his favorite coffee shop. No one at any of his regular haunts had seen him. Briefly, she had contemplated driving out to his old house in Queens but the potential discomfort of seeing Kathy outweighed the likelihood that her partner would be there. Unless, that is, he was working on Stabler Number Six. WhichOlivia really did not want to think about that, much less interrupt.

As Olivia walked up the stairs to her apartment, she ran through the inventory of places Elliot might have gone one last time. The fact that she had covered everywhere didn't give her any peace of mind; it made her worried sick. Where the hell was Elliot?

Olivia exited the stairwell; her worry giving way slightly to anger and resignation. It was clear that her partner didn't want to be found, so she was done trying. For today, at least. If there was anything she knew about herself, it was that she cared about her partner, which meant she would be out looking for him again tomorrow. She sighed heavily, rounding the corner of her hallway, only to spy a very familiar figure slumped against the door to her apartment.

"Elliot?" she called softly. There was no response. Upon arriving in front of her door, she saw why. Elliot, her badass partner with anger issues, was asleep in her doorway. Olivia couldn't help but smile. She had seen him sleep in the cribs before, but this was different. There, he always looked so tense – bunched muscles, a scowl on his face – even as he slept. Here, he looked calm and at peace. Cute, even, if a man of his stature could qualify as cute.

"El?" Olivia shook his shoulder, trying to wake him. Her doorway couldn't possibly be comfortable, but Elliot didn't wake. "El?" she tried again. This time his eyes fluttered open slowly.

"Liv?"

* * *

Elliot had been sitting against her door for the past hour and a half. He knew she was probably out looking for him, worried sick, but he needed the time to think. After their conversation in the locker room, he knew Olivia would want to talk. And, for once, he did too. Elliot was tired of all the tension between them. There were too many secrets, too many rules, too much that went unspoken between them. Elliot wanted it all out in the open.

Things may have gotten better for them since his divorce, in the sense that they had rekindled their friendship, but seeing Olivia in that capacity made Elliot pine for more of her. For what might have been the first time in their partnership, he saw her as more than a cop and a friend. He saw her as a woman, a person just like everyone else. As tough as she was, she wasn't invincible, not physically or emotionally. It startled him that in the months since they had become reacquainted, he had learned more about Olivia than he had in the eight previous years.

Her limit was three drinks. She could beat anyone at darts. She had dyed her hair blonde in college. She could throw a mean Frisbee. She had always wanted a dog, but after a goldfish died after three days in her care, she decided she just wasn't cut out for pets. She was scared of fireworks. He had laughed when she told him that. Bad-ass Benson was afraid of fireworks. In return, she had socked him over the head with a pillow and threatened to tell every woman in the 1-6 that she had slept with him, but that he was terrible in bed. Elliot had shut up after that.

The point was, knowing all these little, trivial facts about Olivia made Elliot want to know all of her. He wanted to know what her skin felt like under his fingers. He wanted to know if she would scream his name during sex. He wanted to know if she slept on her side or her back and what kind of toothpaste she used. He wanted to know how she dealt with a particularly bad case and why she shut people out. Mostly, he wanted to know what he had to do to be allowed in.

Because he wanted to know all of Olivia Benson so desperately, Elliot knew it was time to put all his cards on the table – it was time to admit that he loved her more than he had ever thought was possible.

* * *

"Liv," he said again, with more finality.

She smiled softly. "Hey. Let's go inside, okay?" As she unlocked the door he pushed himself off the ground, nearly groaning aloud. _God, falling asleep there had been a really bad idea._

"I was worried about you, you know," Olivia said as she closed the door and slipped off her shoes. "I looked everywhere."

"I know, and I'm sorry," Elliot said, putting a hand on her upper arm. "I wanted to be the one place I knew you would find me."

Olivia stared at his had on her arm. Regardless of how good of friends they were now, they still didn't touch unnecessarily. It was one of their numerous unspoken rules. His hand was warm on her skin and made a tingling sensation run down her arm. The way he was softly brushing his thumb across her skin made her want to simultaneously melt into him and throw him onto her dining room table and ravish him. She settled for neither, pulling gently out of his grasp.

She cleared her throat and looked down at the floor. "You want something to drink?" she asked, already starting toward the kitchen.

"Not really." The hand was back, this time circled around her wrist and pulling her toward the couch. "I want to talk to you."

"Wow," she joked, as both of them sat down. "Can I get that on tape? Elliot Stabler just admitted to wanting to talk."

He smiled slightly, knowing Olivia made jokes when she was nervous. Right now though, he needed her to listen.

"Liv, just listen, okay?" Elliot said, his eyes serious and looking straight into hers. He waited for Olivia to nod before continuing. "The reason I went ballistic on Mitchelle today was because of what he did to you. And I know" – he held up a hand asking for her silence before she could cut in – "that you can handle those situations yourself, like you did today. But regardless of that, I just got so angry. He had no right to put his hands on you like that or speak to you like that. No right," Elliot emphasized, pausing to rein in his anger at Mitchelle.

"But why, Elliot? I had figured that much out, but why?" Olivia asked.

"Because as much as I tell myself that I have absolutely no claim to you, I think of you as mine. You're _my_ partner and _my_ friend. You have _my_ back day after day, just like I have yours. Liv, you mean a lot to me on the job, but having you in my life off the job is priceless to me. I don't know how I could ever be happy – hell, how I could keep living – without you around," Elliot choked out, tears springing to his eyes at the thought of his life sans Olivia.

"El, what are you saying?" Olivia asked, feigning confusion and fighting hope that he felt the same way she did.

"I'm saying," Elliot took a deep breath and looked her square in the eye, "that I love you. As a friend and a partner, you mean so much to me. But I want all of you, Olivia. Somewhere along the line, seeing you at work stopped being enough. I want to come home with you, eat with you, fall asleep with you, wake up next to you and start the whole crazy cycle all over again. I love you. More than you'll ever know."

Olivia's eyes had filled with tears, so she hid her head in her hands "God, since when do you say stuff like that?" she sniffled.

"Liv?" Elliot questioned.

She looked up. "I love you, too," she said simply. "I don't know how the hell we're going to make it work or if we can but I love you too."

* * *

Just to let you all know, I'm leaving on Wednesday. I'll be out of the country for three weeks, with no access to a computer. I'm hoping to finish this before then, but I might need some incentive. Like, say, lots of reviews... ;)


	4. Chapter 4

_A/N: There are a million excuses, apologies, and explanations that I could put in this author's note, but I will settle for saying that I am so very, very sorry for the wait. Thanks to everyone who's still reading; enjoy and please review!_

Disclaimer: I don't own these characters or anything affiliated with Law & Order: SVU.

* * *

_What in the hell was I thinking?_

Olivia leaned back in her chair and rubbed furiously at her eyes. She had decided that there was something seriously wrong with her. Of course, that could have been the lack of sleep talking, but either way, Olivia Benson had confessed that she loved her partner.

Shit.

And of course, because every element of the universe hated her, mere seconds after she had said _I love you_, the shrill ring of her phone had cut through the glassy-eyed stare she and Elliot were exchanging. At that moment, Olivia had wanted to strangle Cragen. The man had a penchant for interrupting life-altering moments. Now, however, Olivia was wondering if she shouldn't hug him instead.

_What in the hell was I thinking?_

The thought played itself over and over in her mind. It wasn't that she didn't love Elliot; she did. It was just that loving him (or rather, _admitting_ to loving him) entailed being in a relationship with him. Sure, she had fantasized about it but never – ever – did she think it would actually happen.

The thing was, Olivia didn't do relationships. She had dates and flings and fuck-buddies. But relationships? No way, José.

The whole concept of a relationship with the man she loved seemed even more foreign now that she was hours removed from the situation and up to her elbows in a particularly convoluted rape case involving two teenage girls. The girls had both been at the same party, but one at been assaulted at the party while the other had been raped a block away. It was too much of a coincidence to be two separate attacks but according to the girls, they didn't know each other or anything about their attacker. For some reason she couldn't place, Olivia was finding that very hard to believe. She sighed in frustration and twisted in her chair, attempting to relieve some of the tension in her back.

"Olivia," Cragen's voice boomed as he approached her desk, catching sight of her fatigued expression. "Go catch an hour in the crib."

After Cragen had interrupted their confessions of love, Olivia had arrived at the station and worked straight through the night and into the morning. Olivia figured it was probably somewhere around nine o'clock now, meaning she had been awake for more than 24 hours. Normally, she would have fought Cragen tooth and nail on needing sleep, but with her mind on Elliot every second it wasn't on the case, she was officially drained of all energy.

"Yeah, Cap. Okay," Olivia agreed as she hauled herself out of her chair and toward the stairs.

"Liv? Everything alright?"

"Yeah, everything's fine," Olivia said tiredly as she disappeared upstairs.

Cragen wandered back into his office, both puzzled and concerned by his detective's behavior. Most of the time he had to threaten her job or forcibly drag her upstairs to get her to the crib. To see her agree so quickly perturbed him more than he cared to admit. He had thought Olivia sounded slightly off when he had called her in. Her voice had been strained and distracted. He wondered briefly if her mood had anything to do with Elliot's altercation with Mitchelle. Before Cragen's musings could continue, Fin burst through his office door waving a freshly printed report.

"CSU found traces of blood in the bathroom at the party. Neither of the girls had any cuts or abrasions, so we could be talking about a third girl," Fin said hurriedly. "They also found a pair of panties in the toilet. Looks like someone tried to flush away the evidence."

Cragen nodded grimly. "Okay. Go get Olivia; I just sent her to the crib. Then get down to the ME's office and lean on Melinda to get the results from the underwear, see if there are any fluids. And Fin – " Fin paused, already halfway out the door, " – make sure everything's okay with Liv, will you?"

Fin turned slightly in the doorframe. "Sure, Cap," he said slowly. "Mind if I ask why, though?"

"She seems a little bit off. Just make sure she's okay."

"Alright. No problem."

* * *

Olivia lay unmoving on the mattress. She was tired, but every time she closed her eyes, her last conversation with Elliot replayed itself in her mind:

"_As much as I tell myself that I have absolutely no claim to you, I think of you as mine..."_

"_I want all of you, Olivia…"_

"_I want to come home with you, eat with you, fall asleep with you, wake up next to you and start the whole crazy cycle all over again…"_

"_I love you more than you'll ever know."_

And then, her voice:

"_I love you too. I don't know how the hell we're going to make it work, but I love you too."_

Well, if _that_ wasn't the understatement of the year.

Olivia buried her face in the pillow. Damn straight she didn't know how they were going to make it work when she didn't even know if she wanted to try to make it work. What had she been thinking? They were back on track as partners and friends. Everything was good. And then she had to go and be honest with him. Granted, she rationalized, hanging him out to dry could have screwed things up even worse. At least this way there was some chance of…A jarring ring cut through her thoughts.

"Benson," she sat up and answered her phone, tone clipped.

"Liv," Elliot's voice streamed across the line smoothly.

"Hey," she said, her voice softening involuntarily, which she immediately cursed.

"How's the case?"

Olivia heaved a sigh, running a hand roughly through her hair. "A disaster," she said bluntly. "Two girls, both at the same party. One was raped there, the other a block away. They swear don't know each other even though they go to the same school and neither knows anything about their attacker. There's something off about them, though, Elliot. They're lying about something."

"Which school?" Elliot asked

"Saint Luke's, on 57th," Olivia answered. "You know it?"

"Kathleen had a couple friends who went there. It's pretty small."

"You think they know each other, then?" Olivia said, following his train of thought.

"I wouldn't be surprised. See if you can connect the two of them. They could be protecting each other."

"Okay, I'll work that angle. Thanks," Olivia said, growing quiet.

Early in the day she had been almost glad Elliot was on suspension since it meant she didn't have to face him, but as the hours passed she found herself missing his point of view. There was no denying that they were an incredible team, each one balancing out the other. And if she was being completely honest with herself, Olivia was missing more than just access to Elliot's ideas on the case. She was also missing Elliot himself and had caught herself wishing that he was sitting across from her more than once. _Which makes sense seeing as you love him. _She rolled her eyes at the unbidden thought as she simultaneously absorbed the truth it held.

"Look, Liv," Elliot's voice was hesitant, yet laced with a sense of urgency. "Who's working with you on this?"

"Fin. Why does it matter?"

"Just…" Elliot paused. "Just be careful, okay?"

Olivia felt a surge of anger bubble up inside her throat. "If you're trying to suggest that I can't do my job, Elliot, then – "

"Liv," he cut in so quietly she had to strain to hear him. "You know that's not what I meant. Please. Please, just be careful."

Olivia paused, her anger fading at the quiet desperation in his voice. "Okay. I'll be careful," she conceded, speaking just as quietly. She wanted to continue – to question his pleading tone, to reassure him – but she heard footsteps coming up the stairs and then knuckles rapping at the door.

"Olivia?" Fin's voice floated through the piece of wood.

"Give me just a sec, Fin," she called and then turned her attention back to Elliot. "I've got to go. I'll call you later."

"Okay," Elliot answered. "Olivia, I…" he trailed off, suddenly unsure of himself.

Olivia closed her eyes. "I know, El. Me too." There was a click as she disconnected from the call.

"Olivia? You okay in there, baby girl?" Fin asked through the door.

"Yeah, Fin," Olivia said, opening the door and giving him a small smile. "I'm fine."

And for the first time that day, Olivia actually believed it.


End file.
